Embracing the Storm
by colorblind-tonguetied
Summary: I left for a reason. A reason that no one but myself can understand...It was those eyes. Those eyes that saw straight into my wounded soul. I left for a reason... She had hurt me like no one else had. (Mia and Michael)
1. Default Chapter

Embracing the Storm

Disclaimer: they don't belong to me…hahaha they belong to Meg Cabot

Rating: R

_I Michael Moscovitz, never did like the rain. Cold, wet, and Uncomfortable. It's as if the sky was in a depressing mood, and poured out its sorrow into the only place it knew: our streets._

_ There was only one thing I enjoyed about the rain; it was the color of the sky. That beautiful silvery gray it turned always made me stop and just look, taking in the beauty of it. There was none liked it in the world. Of course, what soon came after was nothing worth staring at, and as I have mentioned previously, I detest the rain._

The outside to the Moscovitz's high rise apartment, looked slightly foreboding as Michael headed towards the door. Nodding at the doorman he stepped lightly towards the elevator.

It had been awhile since he'd been home, having run off to college and never coming home for Chanukah or any other holiday for that matter. It had almost been two years since he'd last seen his family. They'd be surprised to see him now, considering he didn't bother calling or writing them.

He took out his keys, which he still had, and unlocked the door.

"Hello? Anyone home? "His voice reverberated throughout the seemingly empty house. That's when he heard his sister. She came running towards the door at full speed and stopped breathless in front of him.

"OH.MY.GOD! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? You don't visit, you don't call, you don't e-mail, IM, or even write a letter in practically two years. You cut me out of your life, and you expect me to welcome you with open _arms_!"

Her eyes were wild with anger, and even…were those tears? Yes. In fact Lilly Moscovitz had let her guard down. Never had she intended to cry in front of her brother. She had full intentions of giving him a piece of her mind and kicking him out. Unfortunately, her emotions had other plans.

Michael looked into his sisters baby blue eyes and saw all the pain he had caused her. It was all there waiting for him to read like a book. All he wanted right now was to take his sister and hold her, just so the pain would stop. But with Lilly, you couldn't do that, at least not right away. She'd have his head off in a minute. The only thing he could offer was,

"Lilly, I'm so sorry" it was then she pulled him into the house and hugged her brother fiercely, sobbing the entire time.

"Why Michael? Why didn't you at least talk to _me_? I missed you so much."

"I'm sorry I really am. I just…I needed to be away I guess. Not from you but from….everything." I hugged her hard, wanting to show her that I meant what I was saying. "Mom and dad? Where are they?"

"Out."Reconnecting" in Italy, or something like that. They won't be back for the next month."

_Month?' _"Woah. That's…that's a long time to leave you by yourself."

"Oh shut up. I'm 19 years old Michael. I can care for myself." Lilly closed the door, and walked into the kitchen. She noticed her brother had put his things down, and was casually looking at the pictures on the wall. "Nothing's really changed Michael…oh, except for one thing-" at that moment, someone who had gone unnoticed for the past 20 minutes, suddenly appeared out of one of the bedrooms.

"Lilly, I can't get this damn i-pod to work." It was then that Michael saw them: those eyes, the color of the clouds before a storm. They bore straight through him, almost causing him to weep and to scream. Those eyes were the very reason he had left, the reason he moved as far as he could from the place he called home. And they belonged to none other than Mia Thermopolis.


	2. Forever is a long time

Embracing the Storm

Disclaimer: they don't belong to me…hahaha they belong to Meg Cabot

Rating: R

I, Michael Moscovitz have a confession to make. I have this awful fear of thunder and lightning. Ever since I can remember, the sound of thunder scared the hell out of me. I used to hide out in my parents bedroom until it was over. Figuring I'd get over it eventually, they allowed me to sleep in bed with them. There was only one slight problem; I never did grow out of it. Not that I slept in bed with them until I moved out or anything like that, but I never did get over that fear. To this day the sound of thunder and the bright lights flashing through my room still scares me to death.

And on a day like today, there was nothing I'd like better than to run outside and get struck by lightning.

Michael stared at Mia for what seemed like an eternity. His heart felt as if it had dropped into his stomach and dissolved within the acid that lay there. He couldn't breathe, nor could he move. He felt his throat become tight with anger and hurt.

It was Mia who had the courage to speak first, "Michael? Oh my God…what are you doing back?" Her eyes shifted to Lilly who raised her eyebrows. Mia hadn't seen him for two years, two years and 3 days. Not that she had been counting or anything. She watched as his eyes shone with hurt and continued to shoot daggers in her direction.

"I should ask you the same. What are you doing here? And when did you come back?" His tone was cold and his voice sounded harsh, perhaps harsher than he meant it. He saw Mia shift from one foot to the other uncomfortably. She dropped her gaze to the floor, and self consciously tucked her hair behind her ears.

Lilly, who had been witnessing the slight argument between the two people she loved most, quickly came to the rescue.

"Hey, Michael, come on, you just got home. Let's leave the explanations for later, huh?" Lilly then picked up his bags and began advancing toward the living room.

"Yeah, let's put it off until later…" His eyes never left Mia, staring into her grey eyes which were now misty with tears. She quickly left him standing alone in the kitchen, racing after his sister.

Questions swarmed through out Michael's brain like hornets around a hive. What the hell was she doing here? Hadn't she hurt him enough? Who did she think she was coming back into his life like this? Sure, technically he was just walking back into his old life, but why was she here? This was _his _home, not hers! Though he wanted to be angry at her, all he really wanted to do was to take her and cover every inch of her body with kisses. His mind was reeling with emotions, filling him with a sense of unease. He couldn't let the girls see him cry. Never would he let _her _see that she had affected him more than he let on.

Walking into the living room, he saw that Lilly had set his things down and began pulling out the bed from the coach.

"Why can't I sleep in my room?" Michael looked at his sister who had slowed down in making his bed. He knew it, he already knew the answer, but he needed to hear it.

"Umm, Michael when I said nothings changed, I kind of …lied. You see with you being gone and all…Mia moved in." Lilly turned to look at her brother who, just as she thought, looked ready to explode with anger. "Michael, please. It's not as if we kicked you out and invited her in. You left, and with there being a separate room and all, Mia…well she moved in."

Michael could feel his stomach churn at the very thought that _that girl_ had been in his house this whole time. The very girl who had torn him apart and made him believe so many lies, was living in his territory. His blood boiled at the very thought, and he felt almost sick.  
"Whatever. I'm going to shower." He picked up his smaller duffle bag and headed for the shower. Much to his anger, it was occupied. He knocked roughly on the door, and waited for a reply.

"I'm almost done!" came the reply. Her voice still made him feel weak in the knees. God! Why now of all times did she have to come back into his life?

Slowly the door opened, and there she stood in front of him. Hair pulled back high on her head, a pair of flannel pants adorned her bottom half, and on top was a tank top. She stood close to him, so close that he could smell her shampoo and see the tears in her eyes.

He pushed his way into the bathroom without so much as an "excuse me". He looked around the room and thought, _how many times had we been in this bathroom together. And each time so happy…now look what you have done. You threw it all away.' _

"Michael I-" she began before being cut off.

"No worries _princess_, I'm no more than a commoner. I can wait my turn." He said the word "princess" as if it were venom rolling off his tongue.

"Please don't call me princess…" she said softly before heading out of the room and closing the door behind her.

Michael stood with his back to the door, holding onto the railing for support. Hot tears of anger and sadness welled behind his eyes, and only then did he let them fall freely. His cries turned to quiet sobs which shook his body. He couldn't believe the pain was back, he thought he rid of it a long time ago. He hadn't felt this way since…since _she _broke him.

Peeling off his shirt and pants, he turned on the water until it was hot enough for him. He was lost in his thoughts, forgetting about his shower and letting the steam fill the room. Her smile, her touch, those kisses, those lips...God, they were what destroyed him. They way she used to laugh at everything he said, they way her lips slightly opened when he made love to her. It was everything about her that drove him crazy, and no matter how angry she made him, he could never forget how ecstatic she made him feel.

_**Two years Prior**_

_They sat in the small hot tub together, not touching not moving, simply…being. She lay out in front of him holding his hand, resting against his chest_

_"Michael…do you ever think about out future…I mean I know that I have to be royal, but do you think we'll be together …forever?" She sounded hesitant and scared. Michael smiled slightly and replied,_

_"Well…forever is a long time baby doll…you think you can stand me for that long?" he felt her shift, and she no longer had her back to him. Her chocolate eyes shone with an innocence that, no matter how hard she tried to hide it, would forever and always be there. _

_"I know I could stand you forever. As long as you loved me the way you do now…in the years to come…I know I can be with you. There is no one in this world that knows me better than you…" She leaned into him for a kiss, and once again he became her prisoner. Her kisses were that of poison, paralyzing him until she devoured every inch of his soul. _

_**Present time**_

Realizing the water had been flowing for over 20 minutes, and the steam was so overpowering he could hardly see a thing, he stepped inside the shower. The hot water sprinkled over his body, and he scrubbed away at his skin roughly. He wanted to wash away all the grime from the bus ride home, but in a way he wished maybe he could wash away his pain.

With his shower done and having dried off, he wrapped the towel around his waist and head out with his duffle bag towards his room. It was when he heard her voice that he stopped and realized it didn't belong to him. And if his ears heard correctly, she no longer did either.

"I know…come over later. Well, let's just say…it's a blast from the past giggle ok, I'll see you later. Me too. Bye."

Michael stood in front of the door way to his former room in disbelief and pain. He knew they were over a while ago, after all she was the one who had thrown it all away, but in his heart he had hoped that maybe one day…one day she'd return to him. It seems that was all in his fantasy world.

"Michael…hey." She seemed surprised to see him standing there, and almost a bit guilty. "I'm sorry I took over your room. chukle I had to get rid of most of your stuff. But don't worry, they're in the storage room…" she was nervous; he could always tell when she was. She looked into his eyes and her smile faded. "Listen …I'm sorry…Ok, let me explain…" Michael harshly laughed at her then, and said angrily,

"I don't care ok? I'm over you…I'm sooo over us. You're nothing to me. I don't need you, and your stupid lies. I've moved on. To me, you're a little kid." The smile was still on his face, and when the tears welled once again in Mia's eyes, his smile dropped. He sighed loudly and dropped his head. "Listen, I'm sorry alright? I just…this is too much to take in." with that he left her to cry by herself.


End file.
